Rocking wheel chair



Filed Sept. 9, 1966 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. Z 00/55 A. BY W 477'0PNEK Dec. 10, 1968 L,

ROCKING WHEEL CHAIR 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 9, 1966 INVENTOR- [00/55 4, K/EL W 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 L. A. KIEL ROCKING WHEEL CHAIR Dec. 10, 1968 Filed Sept.-9, 1966 INVENTOR- ZOU/fiE K/EL BYWS QQQK United States Patent 3,415,531 ROCKING WHEEL CHAIR Louise A. Kiel, 815 S. th Ave., Newton, Iowa 50208 Filed Sept. 9, 1966, Ser. No. 578,222 8 Claims. (Cl. 280-30) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A rocking wheel chair where the rocking motion of the chair is possible only when the driving wheels are braked and an anti-tilt leg is engaged with the ground at the rear. With the wheels unbraked and the anti-tilt leg out of engagement with the ground, the chair is locked against a rocking motion.

This invention relates to wheel chairs and more particularly to improved features in such a chair which has a seat portion rockably mounted on a mobil frame as exemplified in my Patent 3,167,350.

The concept for a rocking wheel chair per se is not new since it has been disclosed at least as early as 1910 in Patent 961,389 and while such a chair has. many obvious advantages for the pleasure and comfort of the users, there are also certain inherent disadvantages which apparently account for the lack of any popular use of this type of chair. Of primary importance in this regard is the ever present danger of tipping over, particularly backwardly, if the rocking motion becomes too pronounced and thus by reason of the very nature of the occupant who is generally incapacitated in some form, the possibilities for injuries are quite great. Further, since such chairs are mobil by their very design, the rocking feature is not conducive to comfort and adequate control of the chair by the occupant when the chair is being propelled.

With these observations in mind, one of the important objects contemplated by this invention is the provision of a rocking wheel chair that will not tip over either forwardly or rearwardly while the seat portion is utilized for a rocking motion.

More particularly it is an object herein to provide on the supporting frame of a rocking wheel chair one or more ground engaging legs that can be placed in ground engaging position at the rear of the chair when the same is used for rocking and which can be moved out of ground engaging position when the chair is being propelled.

Still another important object of this invention is to provide a brake for the drive wheels of the chair which is interconnected with the gno-und engaging legs and with a means for preventing rocking motion of the seat so that by a single operating lever, the occupant can lock the chair against rolling, put the legs in ground engaging position and permit the seat to perform a rocking motion. Likewise, with the same lever, the occupant can release the brake, elevate the legs from the ground engaging position and lock the seat against any rocking motion.

To attain these objects and such further objects as may appear herein, or be hereinafter pointed out, reference is made to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of this new rocking wheel chair,

FIG. 2 is a side view thereof with parts broken away to more clearly illustrate the construction and with solid and broken line positions of the single lever controlled braking, anti-tilting and anti-rocking assembly, and

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the frame and drive wheel section of this chair with the seat portion removed.

Referring to the drawings, the chair designated gener- Cir 3,415,531 Patented Dec. 10, 1968 ally by the numeral 10 comprises the wheeled supporting frame 12 and the seat portion 14 attached thereto and susceptible of a rocking motion as will appear. Frame 12 includes the parallel spaced horizontal side rails 16 and 18 which are connected at the front by the cross rail 20 and at the rear by the cross rail 22. Near the rear portion of rails 16 and 18 are the respective upstanding posts 24 and 26 which at their upper ends carry suitable bearing means 28 and 30 respectively for rotatably supporting the respective drive wheels 32 and 34 of a type well known for wheels of this type. At the extremities of the front cross rail 20 are the respective relatively large caster wheels 36 and 38 and thus far described it will be understood that frame 10 is of a generally well known construction for wheel chairs. Such frame is preferably made of metal tubular material but, of course, other materials may be used, if desired. As an addition to frame 10, I have provided a foot rest platform 40 which is suitably suspended below frame 10 by the depending supports 42 and designed to be forwardly extensible as best seen in FIG. 3.

Intermediate rails 2.0 and 22 there is a transverse elevated seating supporting platform 44 having vertical sides 46 and 48 which at their bottom ends are suitably secured to rails 16 and 18. Platform. 44 has corner holes 50 for securing seat 14 as will appear.

Seat 14 is substantially a comfortable upholstered unit having the seat 52, back 54 and arms 56. Seat 52 is formed on a suitable frame 58 and within the confines of such frame and relative to opposed sides thereof adjacent the respective wheels 32 and 34 is the rocking assembly 60. Both sides of assembly 60 are similarly constructed so a description of one side will suflice. As best seen in FIG. 2, assembly 60* includes a rocker member 62 secured to the side of frame 58 and the curved edge 64 of rocker 62 is disposed to rock on the top edge 66 of a depending plate or board 68 which is attached to rocker 62 by the spring assembly 70 as shown. The bottom edge 72 of plate 68 extends slightly below the bottom 74 of the chair frame and the respective edges 74 of the opposed plates 68 are removably secured to the platform 44 on frame 12 by the bolts and wing nuts 76 engaged therewith relative to holes 50, it being noted that the bolt portions are fixedly secured to edge 74. By this arrangement it will be understood that seat 14 can be suitably rocked at the will of the occupant and such a chair is illustrative of the type to which my new control elements have been applied, which in general include the movable ground engaging members at the rear of the chair shown preferably in the form of the anti-tilt legs 78, rear and forward stops 80 and 82 respectively for selectively engaging the respective rear and forward underside of the chair frame to hold it against rocking at times, a brake means 84 and a lever handle 86 which is interconnected with the several control parts as will appear.

Brake 84, which is a generally unitary bar like structure extending transversely of rails 16 and 18 near the front thereof, comprises two like end sections 88 and 90 each pivotally connected at their inner end to opposite ends of a center connecting bar 92. The other ends of sections 88 and 90 are bent U-shaped to embrace rails 16 and 18 and are pivotally attached to such rails by pins 94 on which such end section pivot into and out of engagement with the ground engaging portion of wheels 32 and 34. A rod 96 connects the center section 92 of brake 84 to a depending arm 98 that is attached to a cross rod 100 which extends between side rails 16 and 18 somewhat forwardly of the rear cross rail 22 as best seen in FIG. 3. Such rod 100 is designed to rotate about its longitudinal axis and is thus set in the bearings 101. Preferably, a fitting 102 is used intermediate rod 96 and arm 98 to threadably receive such rod and afford a longitudinal adjustment means therefor, and thus far described, it will be appreciated that relative forward and rear motion of rod 96 will move brake 84 from its solid to broken line positions seen in FIG. 2 which will be referred to later in more detail.

The anti-tilt legs 78 are preferably arcuate as seen in FIG. 2 and may include rubber tips or the like 104 on their lower or floor engaging end. Near their upper ends, legs 78 are braced by a cross rod 106 which has an upstanding apertured ear 108 secured thereto at each end. The upper ends of each leg 78 just forwardly of cars 108 are secured to respective collars 110 that in turn are rotatably mounted at respective end portions of the rear cross rail 22. On each end portion of cross member 100, there are also spaced upstanding apertured arms 112 which are secured to member 100 for rotation therewith and which are disposed respectively substantially in forward alignment with the respective ears 108 on the cross brace 106. Pivotally connected to the ear 108 and the upper portion of arm 112 at each side of frame 12 are the respective rigid link members 114, preferably of rod material and on the rearward portion of each link 114 near car 108 is the upwardly extending stop 80. Such stop 80 is in the form of a section of channel material welded to link 114 so that it ex'.ends upward and then laterally towards the center area of frame 12 whereby it can abut the bottom edge 74 of the chair at times to prevent any rearward rocking as will be referred to later in more detail.

The forward stop 82, referred to generally heretofore, which is operative to prevent any forward rocking of the chair comprises an elongated bar 116 having integral depending end legs 118 and 120 which, at their bottom ends, are pivotally secured to respective ears 122 on the respective side rails 16 and 18, such ears being located on such rails at a point substantially in line with the perimeter of wheels 32 and 34 as seen in FIG. 2. Stop 82 is thus an inverted channel shaped bar movable between the solid and dotted line position shown in FIG. 2 and operable as will later appear.

The upstanding single lever handle 86, located preferably at the right side of frame 12 relative to an occupant of the chair, is pivotally secured at its lower end to the forward end portion of the side rail 16 by a pin 124 and a rigid link 126 is pivotally connected at respective ends to lever 86 slightly above pin 124 and to substantially the longitudinal center of leg 118 of the stop 82. Another rigid link member 128 pivotally connects at one end to arm 112 below the attachment point thereon of link 114 and at the other end is similarly attached to lever 86 at the point of attachment thereon of link 126.

Operation To use chair as a rocking chair, lever 86 is moved or pulled rearwardly with the following results. Link 128 acts on arm 112 to move it rearwardly which effects a rearward rotation of cross rod 100. Since arm 98 depends from rod 100, the direction of movement of such arm is forwardly which correspondingly moves rod 96 forwardly that is connected to the brake assembly 84 as seen in FIG. 3, the forward movement of rod 96 pushes the cenIer section 92 forwardly causing it to pivot at its ends relative to sections 88 and 90. This in turn causes the end portions of sections 88 and 90 to pivot on pins 94 so that such end portions bear against wheels 32 and 34 for braking purposes and such wheels are thereby locked against rotation. The action of section 92 will be a toggle effect in both forward and rear movements so that the brake 84 will not accidentally operate.

Also, as lever 86 is moved rearwardly, the front stop 82 is moved in an arc rearwardly by link 126 to its solid line position in FIG. 2 where it is out of contact with the chair frame and will not interfere with any rocking motion thereto. At the same time, the rearward movement of arm 112 described, effects the rearward movement of link 114 which in turn acts upon ears 108 to rotate the anti-tilt legs 78 downwardly on collars 110 until such legs come into firm contact with the floor and ground and thus serve to stabilize the chair against tipping over backwardly. Simultaneously with the lowering of legs 78 to floor level, the rear stop is moved rearwardly and downwardly completely out of contact with the bottom of the chair frame. Thus, with lever in its rearward or solid line position as best seen in FIG. 2, the brake 84 is set in holding position, legs 78 are in contact with the ground or floor at the rear of the chair, and the seat portion 14 can be rocked at will for the enjoyment, pleasure and exercise of the occupant without danger or fear of tipping over or having the chair start in motion.

When lever 86 is moved or pushed forwardly to the broken line positions in FIG. 2, the various interactions described above are reversed whereby brake 84 is released, legs 78 are elevated and stops 80 and 82 are moved into positions where they abut the respective rear and forward lower edge of the chair frame to prevent any rocking motion thereof.

From the foregoing it is thought a full understanding of the construction and operation of this invention will be had and the advantages of the same will be appreciated and it is submitted that this invention as shown and described is aptly suited to achieve the purposes intended and is characterized by a combination of highly useful and mutually cooperating elements that combine their respective and proportionate functions in accomplishing the objects sought to be obtained.

It will be understood that the phraseology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not for limitation and that modifications and changes in the construction and arrangement of this invention can be made within the scope of what is claimed, without departing from the spirit and purpose thereof. It is thus intended to cover by the claims, any modified forms of structure or mechanical equivalents which may be reasonably included within their scope.

I claim:

1. In an invalid wheel chair of the type which includes a frame defining a forward and rear end, ground engaging wheels mounted to said frame, and a chair member rockably mounted to said frame, the combination therewith of:

a leg movably carried by said frame at said rear end,

means on said frame to selectively move said leg into and out of ground engaging position,

a braking means comprising a bar assembly disposed transversely of and movably mounted on said frame and including end portions susceptible of frictional engagement with the periphery of the wheels on said frame, and

the means for moving said leg being operatively linked to said braking means whereby said braking means is set in holding position when said leg is in ground engaging position and said braking means is in released position when said leg is out of ground engaging position.

2. A chair as defined in claim 1 including:

a stop movably carried by said frame, and

means connecting said stop to said leg for movement therewith whereby when said leg is out of ground engaging position said stop is in abutment with the underside of one end of said chair to prevent it from rocking in one direction and when said leg is in ground engaging position, said stop is out of contact with said chair.

3. A chair as defined in claim 2 including:

an other stop movably carried by said frame, and

means interconnecting said other stop to the means for moving said leg whereby when said leg is out of ground engaging position said other stop is in abutment with the underside of the opposite end of said chair to prevent it from rocking in one direction and when said leg is in ground engaging position, said stop is out of contact with said chair.

4. A chair as defined in claim 1 including:

a stop movably carried by said frame,

means connecting said stop to said leg for movement therewith whereby when said leg is out of ground engaging position said stop is in abutment with the underside of one end of said chair to prevent it from rocking in one direction and when said leg is in ground engaging position, said stop is out of contact with said chair,

an other stop movably carried by said frame,

means interconnecting said other stop to the means for moving said leg whereby when said leg is out of ground engaging position said other stop is in abutment with the underside of the opposite end of said chair to prevent it from rocking in one direction and When said leg is in ground engaging position, said stop is out of contact with said chair,

a braking means comprising a bar assembly disposed transversely of and movably mounted on said frame and including end portions susceptible of frictional engagement with the periphery of the wheels on said frame, and the means for moving said leg being operatively linked to said braking means whereby said braking means is set in holding position when said leg is in ground engaging position and said braking means is in released postion when said leg is out of ground engaging position. 5. In an invalid wheel chair of the type which includes a frame defining a forward and rear end, ground engaging wheels mounted to said frame, and a chair member rockably mounted to said frame, the combination therewith of:

a leg movably carried by said frame at said rear end, first and second stops respectively engageable with the underside of said chair at the respective rear and forward ends thereof movably carried by said frame, a brake bar movably disposed on said frame transversely of the longitudinal axis thereof and susceptible of frictional engagement with the periphery of the frame wheels, a single upstanding manually operable lever pivotally secured at its lower end to said frame, and a linkage assembly interconnecting said leg, first and second stops and brake bar with said lever whereby movement of said lever in one direction places said leg in ground engaging position, sets said brake bar against the wheels of the frame and moves said first and second stops out of engagement with said chair, and movement of said lever in the opposite direction elevates said leg from ground contact, releases said brake bar and moves said stops into abutting engagement with the underside of said chair at the rear and front end thereof. 6 In an invalid wheel chair of the type which includes a frame defining a forward and rear end, ground engaging wheels mounted to said frame, and a chair member rockably mounted to said frame, the combination there with of:

ground engaging means carried by said frame at said rear end,

means on said frame to selectively move said ground engaging means into and out of ground engaging position,

a braking means comprising a bar assembly disposed transversely of and movably mounted on said frame and including end portions susceptible of frictional engagement with the periphery of the wheels on said frame, and

the means for moving said ground engaging means being operatively linked to said braking means whereby said braking means is set in holding position when said ground engaging means is in ground engaging position and said braking means is in released po sition when said ground engaging means are out of ground engaging position.

7. In an invalid wheel chair of the type which includes a frame defining a forward and rear end, ground engaging wheels mounted to said frame, and a chair member rockably mounted to said frame, the combination therewith of:

ground engaging means carried by said frame at said rear end,

means on said frame to selectively move said ground engaging means into and out of ground engaging position,

a stop movably carried by said frame, and

means connecting said stop to said ground engaging means for movement therewith whereby when said ground engaging means is out of ground engaging position said stop is in abutment with the underside of one end of said chair to prevent it from rocking in one direction and when said ground engaging means is in ground engaging position, said stop is out of contact with said chair.

8. A chair as defined in claim 7 including:

an other stop movably carried by said frame, and

means interconnecting said other stop to the means for moving said ground engaging means whereby when said ground engaging means is out of ground engaging position said other stop is in abutment with the underside of the opposite end of said chair to prevent it from rocking in one direction and when said ground engaging means is in ground engaging position, said stop is out of contact with said chair.

1/1965 Kiel 297--267 11/1965 Bockus.

BENJAMIN HERSH, Primary Examiner. L. D. MORRIS, JR., Assistant Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 

